Horace, a Roman poet during the time of Augustus, once said that “a picture is a poem without words.” When it comes to this notion of thinking, images do indeed have stories to tell, so when one interprets multiple images or works of art simultaneously, the story becomes clearer and clearer and a pattern emerges. Traditional art, Impressionism, Post-Impressionism and the works that make up these respective categories are essential elements of the history of contemporary art, acting not only as a simple influence, but also as a foundation on which it stands. is built. Artists like Edouard Manet took a more traditional approach to modern subjects with a more finished approach, while impressionists like Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne and Camille Pissaro used plein air painting to depict light in a new way . The expressive emotionality of Van Gogh, the abstraction of Paul Gauguin, and the structural qualities of Paul Sérusier pushed the boundaries even further in how to convey form, while also conveying emotion. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The aforementioned artistic movements and the artists who respectively make up these movements ultimately acted as the catalyst that ultimately led to the works of art of today. Unusual cropping, painting what the eye sees rather than what the brain perceives, and the use of color to convey emotion all effectively informed and influenced art to come. The modern but ordinary subject matter painted by rapid and visible brushstrokes, with emphasis on the precise depiction of light regarding the passage of time, are all characteristics of contemporary art, especially with regard to landscape paintings, and can be directly attributed to traditional art, impressionism. , post-impressionist movements respectively. Traditional art, often depicting modern life with contemporary subjects, took a figurative or classical approach to production. In "The Balcony", a work created by Édouard Manet, this classical approach is perfectly illustrated by the depiction of a modern subject, a perspective composed with subjects looking directly at the audience, as well as the final calm of the work with little visible brush strokes. The emphasis on precision, line and structure is also evident, with the balcony railing and door perfectly framed, framing the figures in the scene. Without photography, precision was paramount, but once photos could account for this precision, artists sought to capture what the camera could not capture, an impression of what was seen, rather than simply what was seen. When an artist attempts to depict reality, especially in a landscape painting, there is little room for subjectivity given the nature of accuracy versus objectivity. For young artists, this objectivity was only a constraint and did not allow for the variance and variety of modern art that we see today because it simply was what it was. Claude Monet's 'Impression: Sunrise' beautifully showcases the contrasting approach to traditional art forms through composition, the feeling of unfinishedness that painting evokes, and the use of color to convey meaning. emotion. Monet was considered one of the first impressionists because of his individualism and emotional expressivism which he embraced despite criticism,.